Feb. 13, 2005
Columbia, S.C. – South Carolina dropped a 66-36 decision to No. 1/1 LSU Sunday at the Colonial Center.
With the loss, the Gamecocks dipped to 6-18 overall and 0-10 in the Southeastern Conference, while the top-ranked Tigers improved to 23-1 overall and 10-0 in the SEC. Including Sunday’s game, South Carolina had faced the No. 1 team in the nation on six occasions, dropping all six.
Carolina hung tough in the first half, leading 17-16 with 5:31 remaining after a bucket from Stacy Booker. From that point, however, the Tigers went on a 10-2 run to close out the half and went into the locker room with a 26-19 lead. Leading the way for LSU in the first half was freshman center Sylvia Fowles, who came off the bench to score four points and grab eight rebounds in the first 20 minutes. Fowles finished with 13 points and nine boards. All-American Seimone Augustus added 13 of her own for LSU.
The Tigers’ 10-2 run to close out the half became a 34-2 run once the second half started, as South Carolina was held without a field goal for the first 8:23 of the second half as LSU rattled off 24 unanswered points. Angela Hunter broke the ice when she knocked down a jumper that brought the score to 50-21 with 11:37 remaining.
Stacy Booker scored a team-high 15 points for South Carolina.
South Carolina was again without the services of starting point guard Lea Fabbri, who remains in Croatia to be with her father who is ill. Fabbri’s return date to the Gamecock lineup is uncertain, as she is out indefinitely.
South Carolina has dropped its last 16 games against SEC opposition dating back to a 77-51 win over Alabama on Feb. 12 of last year and has lost 15 consecutive games against ranked opposition. Meanwhile, LSU claimed its 10th consecutive win of the year Sunday. Included in the Tigers’ streak are wins over Tennessee, Georgia and Vanderbilt.
The Gamecocks return to action Thursday, when they travel to Knoxville to battle No. 5/5 Tennessee at 7p.m. The game will be televised live by Comcast Sports and the radio broadcast can be heard live on WISW 1320 AM, with Andy Demetra handling play-by-play and Robin Muller providing analysis. The broadcast can be accessed worldwide via the internet at www.uscsports.com.
